


Ammunition - a war story

by Ars3nicCatnip



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - War, Major character death - Freeform, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Original Universe, War, War Story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-02-17
Updated: 2012-02-17
Packaged: 2017-12-08 19:23:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,067
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/765096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ars3nicCatnip/pseuds/Ars3nicCatnip
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A young girl is faced with the destruction of her hometown. Her sister and she are the only ones left alive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ammunition - a war story

**Author's Note:**

> This is a short story written for the young authors contest. (Last year.) I won for the county, so I thought I might as well post it. Enjoy!

"We cannot stay here anymore." With the quiet sentence I uttered, she glanced over in my direction, a morose expression held in her black eyes. She nodded knowingly, slinging the small backpack salvaged from the wreckage over her shoulder. One thing I'd learned in the past week: war was unforgiving, unmerciful, and undeniably brutal. My sister, Alice and I had now witnessed more death in a single day that I could say my eldest relative had seen in their entire life. The streets now lay deathly still and silent, almost no signs of life, with an exception of the rare sight of one with an extreme casualty who clung to life ever so slightly. We'd only seen one. When I'd returned to ask them to come along with us, they were gone.   
I guess we really are alone now, Alice and I. Our destination is unknown yet, and our plan is not solid; she came up with it in a simple sentence thrown back when I'd asked what we were to do.   
"Walk. Walk until we aren't dead any longer," she'd replied, a deathly cold hostility for something unknown masking her usual cheery voice. I guess it could be said that destinations weren't as important as one would expect in a time like this. It wasn't like we had much to lose. The worst that could happen is that we die. It wouldn't be so bad, being reunited with everyone else might be a bit of relief. I'd seen everything that I only thought could live in my worst nightmares. I remember it so clearly, like it had happened only minutes ago, perhaps even seconds.  
Everything started with the bombings. The first was dropped on Monday; 4 days ago. It was funny how we thought we were safe, that just because we were us, nothing bad could happen. Bad things always happen to other people. Don't believe that for long, it ensures disappointment. The sound of the bombs will last in my heart forever, incessantly echoing throughout my head and bouncing back and forth between the walls of my skull. My mother ushered us into the basement, hushing my sibling's worried whines and cries. She did well, being the only one there to console us. I'm not quite sure when my father left the picture, but I don't remember him very much. It must have been a while ago if my memory fails me so. When the bombs ceased to fall, a dense wave of relief washed over the household. I never thought I would welcome silence like I had then. We returned to the ground level and I rushed to the window to assess the damage. Shock greeted me with a sheer slap in the cheek. Apartments along the street were destroyed, fires raged and streetlamps lay toppled in the road. Our line of houses lay untouched, salvaged from the first signs of war.   
It was only the beginning.   
Thursday was the last time I ever saw my Mother and my two brothers, Adam and Elliott. Things had quieted down since Monday, and I'd started to believe that we had already seen the worst. Alice and I were sitting at the table, drawing on pieces of old yellowed paper I'd found in the basement drawers. We were the only ones inside; my brothers and Mother were in the yard, enjoying the nice weather. A deafening noise raised my head and raised goosebumps on my arms. Gunfire. Already, my sister was out of her seat at the door. Soldiers from the rival nation marched down the streets in neat rows, just firing away at everything that moved. My mother screamed at my sister to hide as she scrambled to get inside herself. Without hesitation, Alice pulled me from the table and dragged me to the basement, specifically the hidden cellar near the far corner. We used it for storage, but it proved to be a good hiding place. We waited there for ages, for Adam, for Elliott, Mother, anyone really. There was definitely movement in the house, but neither of us dared call out to confirm who was here. There was a long silence after the front door was closed. We waited for hours before venturing out. It was deathly quiet. No noises from the street, no creaking from next door neighbors, nothing. The silence I had loved days ago now prodded me mockingly, almost as if saying "be careful what you wish for." What I wished for now was to see my family's faces.   
Their bodies were on the lawn, just laid out like toy soldiers being lined up for battle. It was like that up and down the street, displaying my friends and neighbors like a bug collection. The soldiers were gone, unflinching to the thought of how many lives they'd just ended, probably gone on to destroy the next town. It was disgusting, how cruel humans could be to one another, slaughtering just to win land or goods. That's all this dispute was over, objects. How we treated one another like inanimates.   
Alice came up with her plan that day, expanding only a small bit on what we would do from there. She made me gather up a few belongings, including canned food and water. She took what she thought was necessary and nothing else. I had to commemorate her for being so strong through everything.   
"I don't want to leave everything as much as you do," she explained, saddened with the thought of having to face the fact that our old lives were gone. "But remember, we're the lucky ones. We survived. We have to avenge everyone else by surviving. It won't do any good to sit here and feel sorry for ourselves," she added, in case of any self-pity I may have portrayed. We stayed at the house for one last night. In the morning, Alice waited for me outside, standing in the middle of the road and looking down the street with a blank expression. She hadn't moved since.  
"We're leaving now," Her words interrupted me from my thoughts. "Don't forget to say goodbye." What an odd thing to say. No one here was left alive, despite us.   
"Who are we wishing goodbye?" I found myself asking, hand tightening on my backpack in anxiety.  
"Our sanity," she replied simply, and with that she turned down the road and began to walk.


End file.
